Sled Dog Art
by Veryl Goodnight
Longtime readers here will know that my dear friend, the Colorado artist Veryl Goodnight, was the inspiration and motivation behind my last book, The History of Sled Dogs in North America, and 17 of Veryl’s magnificent paintings grace the cover and inside pages of my book. Veryl has continued to paint sled dogs in a historical context, and this past winter she focused on dog team mail delivery, writing in her recent newsletter: “My goal was to portray the work ethic of these magnificent animals that often meant the difference between life and death. There are many stories of dogs and drivers overcoming seemingly unsurmountable odds….”
Veryl’s beautiful art captures that work ethic and pays tribute to the historic role sled dogs have played in our nation’s past. We are fortunate to have an artist of her caliber working to preserve the rich heritage of these dog teams, and she is coordinating museum exhibits across the nation which will further education and promote a broader understanding of their place in our past.
Veryl’s entire collection of sled dog paintings—and her bronze sculpture, “Village Kinship”—can now be seen online at her website. Again, Veryl’s words: “The sled dog was to the north what the horse was to the plains! An artist’s creative pursuit is an exciting journey into the unknown. Discovering the many crucial roles sled dogs and their drivers played in history became just such an adventure for me. Once I realized both the time and geographical scope of our partnership with dogs, I began painting with a mission to share their story.”
Please visit Veryl’s website to view her sled dog paintings and the stories behind each one, and be sure to watch her wonderful five-minute video, “The Gold Rush Dogs”!
Helen Hegener